Doors

The traveler has to knock at every alien door to come to his own, and he has to wonder through all the outer worlds to reach the innermost shrine at the end.

~ Rabindranath Tagore

- - - - -

Though New Year's Eve is my least favorite holiday (it seems mostly like a socially-condoned excuse for bad behavior), I do like the end of the year as a time of reflection.  And a time of preparation for the year to come.  New doors to go through, if you will.  Changes to make.  Adventures to take.  Ideas to have.

You know the saying, "Don't let the door hit you on the way out?"  I have been giving that a little thought lately.  It is a very passive-aggressive phrase.  It sort of sounds like the person cares and doesn't want you to be hit by a door (or whatever object), but usually it isn't caring at all.  And also, most doors to the outside open OUT, so if a door hits you on the way out, someone behind you must have slammed it into you as you were walking away.

Does that make sense?  Try to picture it.  Maybe it will then.  (pause while you picture it).  Okay, maybe it still doesn't make sense.

Let's try this instead...  I think that when we are leaving a year behind us we should be more excited about moving ahead than we are about holding on to the past.  I have always thought - when I face huge challenges or struggles in my life - that difficulties occur so that we never want to go back again.  So we are always forward-focused.

With that in mind, I welcome 2013.  I appreciate the good and the bad of 2012, though I I hope to have learned enough to not replicate some of those negative experiences.  And I hope to appreciate the good enough to try and do more good and create more positive things in the future.

And also I hope everyone around me has learned enough to try to do more good for me and create more positive things in my future, too.  I think you all can do that if you really try.

Snow

 

A lot of people like snow.  I find it an unnecessary freezing of water.

~ Carl Reiner

- - - - -

 

It is hard work living somewhere where blizzards happen.  When it snows you have to work just to move about.  You have to work hard to move about physically because you're trying to walk in snow.  You have to work to move about in a car because you're snowed in. 

 

But then, life is hard sometimes.

 

I was talking with Ebony about the blizzard and she said, "I'm kind of a diva when it comes to snow.  If I'm going to come all the way into work on a day like this, somebody needs to buy me lunch.  And give me something warm to drink.  And give me chocolate. And not the cheap chocolate, either.  They need to give me the good chocolate.  From someplace like Belgium."

 

I would really like Ebony to call her memoir, Snow Day Diva.  And I would like part of the money she makes on the book.  Or she could just give me money without writing the book.  I'm flexible.

 



Glitter

Fortune is like glass - the brighter the glitter the more easily broken.

~ Pubilius Syrus

- - - - -

I do not understand why everything around the holidays has to have glitter on it.  Did you know that you can get a static shock from glitter?  Well, you can.  Or at least I can.  And that is not a nice way to spend the holidays.

There is glitter on ornaments and on cards and on stockings and on Menorahs and on packaging for candy.  It is ridiculous.

I shouldn't complain, I know.  I am the one choosing to go into the world of consumerism to see the glitter.  And I really ought to be grateful.  At least I don't have to work in the glitter mines.  I would so not like that.

Justice

Justice in the life and conduct of the State is possible only as first it resides in the hearts and souls of the citizens.

~ Plato

- - - - -

If you say in a judicial hearing, "I'm not a slimeball," you probably are a slimeball.

(pause)

And I crack myself up using a photo of my brother in a post about slimeballs.

Diller

"I never made 'Who's Who,' but I made 'What's That?'"

~ Phyllis Diller

- - - - -

Me:  Did you hear about Phyllis Diller?  Sorry.

Kirk:  Thanks.  Actually, Bryan made sure I knew right away yesterday.  When i told Jared he said...  "Don't you still have that picture of her you got from your sister for Christmas?  Fyi... even though I was about 4 when you gave it to me...  I think I still do.

Me:  Read my blog tomorrow.

Kirk:  Will do!  you do know that was the only present I got to open early?  And I ended up with nothing to play with but a picture of Phyllis Diller...  Oh, and again...  I was four.

Me:  Clearly the photo traumatized you more than I realized.  The past is the past.  Grow up.

Me:  And I think you were older than that because I think I was in college when you got it.

Me:  And the things that don't kill us make us stronger.

Me:  Phyllis Diller would be ashamed of you.

Me:  Now I have to go edit my blog for tomorrow.

Kirk:  You were in college...  But I still think I was four... Though that's not possible.  And I'm 90% sure it's still in my closet at Mom and Dad's.

Ornaments

There is only one step from the sublime to the ridiculous.

~ Napoleon Bonaparte

- - - - -

Imagined conversation...

Woman:  What are we going to get Noel for Christmas this year?

Man:  I'm not sure.  What do you think?

Woman:  Do we actually have to get him anything?

Man:  Well, I think we should.  He always invites us to the cabin for a weekend in the summer

Woman: I suppose you're right.  He's just so difficult to shop for.

Man:  I will agree with you there.

Woman:  (laughing)  You know, it would be funny if we could find him an ornament of a campfire.

Man:  (laughing)  You are right.  He certainly does love a campfire.

Woman:  Remember the song he made up about that?  I think he called it, "I Love a Campfire!"

Man:  (laughing more loudly)  I do remember that.  "A campfire makes me dance.  'Specially when it gets on my pants!"

Woman:  (laughing to the point of tears)  Yes.  Yes.

Man:  Oh my goodness!

Woman:  What?  What is it?

Man:  LOOK at that ORNAMENT!

Woman:  It is PERFECT.

(pause)

This is why I imagine a lot of ornaments are purchased.  Some sort of inside joke.

Earlier that year, overheard at the ornament design office.  "I dunno.  A campfire maybe?"

I would also imagine that Satan gives out a lot of these ornaments as gag gifts.

Tree

Never cut a tree down in the wintertime.  Never make a negative decision in the low time.  Never make your most important decisions when you are in your worst moods.  Wait.  Be patient.  The storm will pass.  The spring will come.

~ Robert H. Schuller

- - - - -

I think it is interesting when people decorate trees around the holidays.  I think it sort of bridges human and nature.  Of course if human cuts down the tree it could be mostly about human dominating or controlling nature.  Or if human decorates a tree and the tree doesn't like it, the language barrier is an issue.

I wonder if anyone has a Christmas tree for their family tree.  Probably The Royal Tannenbaums.

Sticks

Great talents are the most lovely and often the most dangerous fruits on the tree of humanity.  They hang upon the most slender twigs that are easily snapped off.

~ Carl Jung

- - - - -

Even though Sara said her son had a Star Wars costume that could pass for a shepherd's outfit, she refused to wear it to the holiday party as part of her "seasonally festive" wardrobe.

Sara:  I would need a staff and I don't have a staff.

Me:  Use a stick.

Sara:  I don't have any sticks at my house.  Just small trees.

Me:  A small tree is the same thing as a stick.

Pole

A well-developed sense of humor is the pole that adds balance to your steps as you walk the tightrope of life.

~ William Arthur Ward

- - - - -

I wonder if Santa has north telephone poles.  And why aren't they called north poler bears?  I bet in high school Santa was on the track team as a north pole vaulter.

But I mock.  And I shouldn't.  My guess is that Santa Claus is engaged in a LOT of north polemics at this time of year.  He doesn't need any additional grief.

Preparation

Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity.

~ Lucius Annaeus Seneca

- - - - -

I don't understand why everyone thought the world was going to end yesterday.  According to the Earl Mayan calendar - as I read it - December 21st was simply the day you should have sharpened your gardening tools and drained your lawnmower in preparation for spring.  

Tomorrow?

Tomorrow is only found in the calendar of fools.

~ Og Mandino

- - - - -

So, today is the day.  According to some interpretations of the Mayan calendar, the world will end today.  If that is the case, this will either be the last of my blogs you read OR you may not even get a chance to read it.  Either way, I wish you well.

And, before we give up and assume the end of all time, might I make a suggestion?  I know it's a little late, but maybe we could revisit the Mayan calendar.  Maybe we can try to figure out if it is telling us something else.  And maybe, just maybe, we can double-check to make sure it isn't a Mayan advent calendar. 

Scarecrow

We must not make a scarecrow of the law,

Setting it up to fear the birds of prey,

And let it keep one shape till custom make it

Their perch, and not their terror.

~ William Shakespeare

- - - - -

I took this photo outside the house where my grandparents used to live.  First of all, Grandma would have never had a display like this.  I don't know that she disliked pumpkins and squash and such, it just wouldn't have happened.

And second of all, if there had been a scarecrow, I think Grandma would have given it had a head.  You might think that a headless scarecrow is scarier than one with a head, but only to people.  Because people think, "Yike!  I'd hate not to have a head."  Crows, on the other hand think, "Wow.  I bet a crow ripped the head off that person.  That means free reign in the garden!" 

Of course the crows would be disappointed that there wasn't a garden here but only a pile of pumpkins.

(pause)

Seriously, it would take like two minutes to put one of those pumpkins on the scarecrow to make it look like it had a head.  

Twelve

Twelve significant photographs in any one year is a good crop.

~ Ansel Adams

- - - - - 

A week ago today it was 12/12/12.  Twelve comes from the Germanic "twalif" or "two left over."  According to Wikipedia, only the "tw" remains as a link between twelve and two.

Twelve is a pretty significant number.  You can find lots of reasons - religious and not - for this.  12 apostles, 12 signs of the zodiac, a symmetrical and perfect number.

I think what it probably boils down to is that "Twelve Angry Men," "High Noon," and "Cheaper by the Dozen" are the most important films of all time.

Bicycle

When I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new bicycle. Then I realised that the Lord doesn't work that way, so I stole one and asked Him to forgive me. 

~ Emo Phillips

- - - - -

I kind of think that if someone is talented enough to ride a bike on the fence, maybe we should let them.  Of course there are significant risk management issues, so maybe we shouldn't.  But maybe we have too many laws governing human behavior, so maybe we should.  Or maybe the number of lawsuits has gotten so out of hand that we shouldn't.  Maybe people are at a place to take full responsibility for all of the decisions they make, and we should.  Or maybe they're not and we shouldn't let them do things like riding bicycles on fences.

One could say I'm kind of like a bicycle on the fence on this one.  But don't say it around whoever is responsible for enforcing this sign.  I don't need that kind of grief.

Gas

I suppose I would still prefer to sit under a tree with a picnic basket rather than under a gas pump, but signs and comic strips are interesting as subject matter.

~ Roy Lichtenstein

- - - - -

I like old gas pumps.  I don't feel compelled to own one right now, but I think they are interesting.  I'm pretty sure these were not functioning pumps since they were located so close to the building.  I could be mistaken, but - let's face it - that's highly unlikely.
 
They probably decided to call them gas pumps because gas squirters doesn't sound very good.

Idea

Take up one idea.  Make that one idea your life - think of it, dream of it, live on that idea.  Let the brain, muscles, nerves, every part of your body, be full of that idea, and just leave every other idea alone.  This is the way to success.

~ Swami Vivekananda

- - - - -

I love this quotation, but I must admit that I do not really live by it.  I don't have an overarching idea to which I have dedicated my work and my life.  I think you could find some themes in my life - creativity, humor, etc.  But I wouldn't say that I have committed every act and every part of my being to "becoming a justice on the Supreme Court" or "cake decorating" or "optic fiber technology."  I also am not completely sure why I put those three things in quotation marks.

Anyway, the other day I got a message from my friend Liz who said she would like to be the subject of a blog.  She provided me with a few possible topics.  Let's just say that she is a multiple idea person, as well.  I say this because short of a piece of creative writing, I find it difficult to link wildlife, makeup, and condiments as a single theme.  Though, maybe, I kind of did that here.

Decisions

 In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.

~ Theodore Roosevelt

- - - - -

As I write this particular entry, I am struggling with a cold.  I stayed home yesterday because of it.  This morning I woke to a sore throat and a headache.  I am inclined to stay home again, but I have some work I need to take care of.  That said, I can't stand it when people who are sick come to work and get other people sick.  If you are sick, please stay away from me.  ESPECIALLY if you are sick with the disease that makes you into a zombie.

If I wanted, I could use my decision-maker (see photo above) to help me determine if I should stay home or not.  Gretchen gave it to me.  I really like it.  The problem is, it is at work.

Life is hard.

Unique

A work of art is the unique result of a unique temperament.

~ Oscar Wilde

- - - - -

I say this a lot, but the image you see above is one of the reasons I really like working on a college campus.  I appreciate the creativity of students.  I like it when they take the time to do creative and non-destructive vandalism.  Which I guess isn't vandalism at all since vandalism is the destruction of something beautiful or venerable.  

I guess instead it's art.  Yes.  I like it when students create art.

Unless they are destructive and, for example, melt candles or metal down the sides of buildings.  That really is just plain vandalism.  If they melt watches and clocks then it is actually vanDALIsm.  I'm not in favor of that.

Urchin

If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder without any such gift from the fairies, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in.

~ Rachel Carson

- - - - -

"Look!!  A sea urchin!" the boy exclaimed.

His father chuckled, "That's not a sea urchin.  That's a sand bur."  

Because the child was so devastated by his father's laughter at the discovery, the child ran away to the sea, adopted raggedy dress and became an urchin himself.  He didn't know it at the time, but he was teaching his own father a lesson.  A lesson in guilt and tragedy and irony and vocabulary.

Train

If you board the wrong train, it is no use running along the corridor in the other direction.

~ Dietrich Bonhoeffer

- - - - -

Yesterday (or the day before) in my blog post I put "On a recent train ride..."  Leslie asked me when I had been on a train recently.  Since I had written the blog post a while ago, I didn't know what she meant.  When I re-read it, I realized I should have put "On a recent PLANE ride."  The photo included railroad tracks, so I am guessing that maybe I got distracted (as I am prone to do) by the photo and typed train instead of plane.

It was strange because I had just the night before encouraged Pamela to consider taking Amtrak for the holidays.  I told her I thought it might be just like The Polar Express.  Then I reconsidered the customer service on the Polar Express and thought that might not be an ideal way to travel.  Especially if you misplace your ticket.

Codes

 

I would always encourage people of any age not to be so quick to follow other people's truths but to search and follow your own moral code and live by your own integrity, and mostly just be brave.

~ Jewel Kilcher

- - - - -

On a recent train ride there was a toddler sitting behind me.  I am not sure, but I think his father called him, "Ptomaine."  Anyway, Ptomaine asked for his "tar."  At first his dad asked if he was asking for his "guitar."  I wondered if the kid was going to play "Talk Dirty to Me," or "Every Rose has its Thorn."  But, no.  Ptomaine was saying "tar" for "car."  And by "car" he meant his choo choo train.

Ironically, that same morning, Leslie had emailed me an article about a dead pigeon.  "How does that even relate to this?" you ask.  Well, let me tell you.  See, the pigeon was found in a chimney with a coded message taped to its leg.  According to British sources, the code had not been broken.  If it was a single use code with a set of character known only to the sender and receiver, said the experts, it might never be broken.

My point is this.  If you need someone to make up an unbreakable code, partner with a toddler.  I think many of the messages they send to their parents are codes known only to the sender and receiver and they might be difficult to break.

Patriotic

We know Virginia is in NASCAR country.

~ Patrick Henry

- - - - -

I guess maybe you can put a flag on anything and people will think you're patriotic.  Even honey buns.  I guess I don't really understand what patriotism is.  It does remind me of the talk by some people (who referred to themselves as patriots during the election season).  Those same people are now threatening - in some states - to secede.  It's funny how when one party loses, people threaten to leave - to secede or to move to Canada - like they want us there.  Or would let us in. 

And then I wonder if people know what the word means.  While "secede" and "succeed" sound a lot alike, they are not the same thing.

As for the quote above...  well, it is listed online, so it must be true.  And I checked and it even cited the Patrick Henry - statesman, patriot, and orator as the source.  Without computers, I wouldn't have realized that NASCAR is more than 250 years old and actually predates the invention of the gas-fired internal combustion engine.

Hell

I never did give anyone hell.  I just told the truth and they thought it was hell.

~ Harry Truman

- - - - -

Sometimes what the hell is a statement and not a question.

Army

Tanks come in two forms: 
The dangerous, deadly kind and the "liberating" kind.

~ Robert Fisk

- - - - -

Leslie and I were talking about the Army / Navy game and she said it was interesting how different people engaged with it and, I guess, with football in general.  Leslie said that each person celebrated or got fired up about the game in his or her own way.

Leslie:  Whatever floats your boat, I guess.

Me:  Are you allowed to say that?

Leslie:  What?

Me:  Shouldn't it be "Whatever yanks your tank?"

After reflecting, "Whatever yanks your tank," sounds kind of like a double entendre.  Almost any time you use the word "yank" it sounds like a double entendre, though.

Flamingo

She is pure Alice in Wonderland, and her appearance and demeanor 

are a nicely judged mix of the Red Queen and a flamingo.

~ Truman Capote

- - - - -


A bucket of flamingos is not something you hear about very often.  A bucket of chicken, maybe but that is different.  I bet if flamingos tasted like chicken and there was a chain of restaurants they would be called "Florida Fried Flamingo."  The side dishes might be mostly the same.  And if they wanted, over the years, to distance themselves from the word "fried" and changed their name to FFF, it wouldn't be as catchy as KFC.

 Oh, and I guess the buckets would have to be bigger.

(pause)

So it's probably just as well that never caught on.  Or was even attempted.

Spam

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.

~ Melody Beattie

- - - - -

I like to tease Leslie's mom about Spam.  She - apparently - hates Spam.  I even went so far as to leave her a recipe for Spam & Apple turnovers, but even that could not sway her.

So, the other night when I was in the grocery store, I saw this.  I took a photo and sent it to Leslie and said, "For your mama?"  Leslie's response was, "Yukko."  I took that to mean, "No, Michelle.  It is thoughtful of you to try to find new meal alternatives for my mother, but I don't think this is one she would enjoy.  You are thoughtful, though."

I, however, think this is the kind of thing that needs to be TRIED.  You can't judge a "Spam Meal for 1" by it's cover.  So, I have mailed one to Leslie's mom.  And I cooked it first, so she won't have to dilly dally in trying it.

Thoughtful is not my middle name.  But it could be.  I'm glad it's not because it already took me long enough to fill in the name section on those Scantron bubble sheets for exams as it was. 

Path

A straight path never leads anywhere except to the objective.

~ Andre Gide

- - - - -

It's hard to figure things out in life.  Sometimes you have to make mistakes to learn.  And I think that's okay.  It's important to know that each mistake carries a lesson.  And an opportunity.  And some mistakes are bigger than others.

For example, if my mom accidentally calls me by my brothers' names, that is a small mistake.  From that mistake I can learn that her mind is slipping away and it is an opportunity to mock her. And she can learn my name and that I am hilarious when I mock her.

Quotes

Have you ever observed that we pay much more attention to a wise passage when it is quoted, than when we read it in the original author? 

~Philip Gilbert Hamerton

- - - - -

I was trying to find a quote by Gwen Ifill for one of my blog entries.  As I was doing the google search, I saw that she has a quote in Successories.  And then I thought, "Wow.  That's cool.  I'd like to have a quote in Successories some day."  We all have our dreams.

(pause)

Or I could just meet Gwen Ifill, maybe.  Or buy something from Successories.

Soup

 

Only the pure of heart can make good soup.

~ Ludwig van Beethoven

- - - - -

Last night I made some soup to have this week.  Not just out of a can soup.  I made it with ingredients and stirring and adding and stirring and cooking and watching.  I even had to cut some things up for the soup and prepare things before they could go in the soup.

And I tasted it and it tasted okay to me.

Of course, all that said, I did somehow end up with the final soup product in a frying pan instead of a soup pan or a pot or whatever.  I think that is okay, though.  Once I had it in the frying pan it had to stay there. Unless I invite an Augustinian or a Carmelite or some such person over.  I guess then it could go out of the frying pan and into the friar.

Bridge

Keep your goals away from the trolls.

~ Peter McWilliams

- - - - -

In the Three Billy Goats Gruff, I think we need to acknowledge that the troll was ahead of his time situated as he was in a Norwegian folktale.  He wanted to charge people to use his bridge.  And we do that now - toll bridges (as opposed to "troll bridges") and toll roads and Tollhouse cookies.  Of course, thus far we don't charge people their lives to use these things. 

In that way the troll's thinking is a bit antiquated.  And doesn't really lend itself to long-term sustainability / income / wealth generation.  But trolls are known to live kind of hand to mouth.  Or hoof to mouth if they are goat-eaters.  Which can lead to aphthae epizooticae.

Farming

It is thus with farming: if you do one thing late, you will be late in all your work.

~ Cato the Elder

- - - - -

I think that farmers are incredibly hard working.  And it doesn't really matter what kind of farming they do.  Crops.  Livestock.  Anything.

And I think the fact that the one farmer took a vacation to The Dells is fine.  They work hard and they deserve time off as much as anyone.  I like that the farmer in The Dells got some cheese.  Wisconsin is a good place to do that.  Why the cheese stood alone, I'm not sure.  Maybe it was Camembert.

Gravel

If kids like a picture book, they're going to read it at least 50 times. Read anything that often, and even minor imperfections start to feel like gravel in the bed. 

~ Mark Haddon 

- - - - -

The other day I was trying to think of the word "gavel."  It rhymes with "gravel," which is why I used this photo and quote if that was not obvious.  Anyway, I couldn't think of the word "gavel."  I could only think of the word "anvil."

I think it's because a gavel is like a hammer of justice and an anvil is like a hammer of justice for Wile E. Coyote.  And an anvil was probably used to make Thor's hammer of justice.  And also, I guess that I think more justice occurs in cartoons and comic books than in real life.

Cat

People don't buy for logical reasons.  They buy for emotional reasons.

~ Zig Ziglar

- - - - -

I believe this, I guess.  Even purchases made for things people need.  Like socks.  Where you buy your socks may be driven by emotion rather than logic.  Or groceries.  Could people who only buy organic food be doing it based on emotion?  I think so.

Or the glitter cat ornament above.  Well, there aren't a lot of either emotional or logical reasons to buy that.  In fact there are zero logical reasons.  The only emotional reasons I can think someone would buy this glitter cat ornament wearing clothes are guilt, depression, shame, regret, and grief.

No, wait.  Those are the emotions they would experience AFTER buying this glitter cat wearing clothes.

I can't think of an emotional reason they would buy the glitter cat wearing clothes.

And also, if Glitter Cat were a superhero or a villain, it would be a villain.  Mainly because of the glitter part.

Looking

The best car safety device is a rear-view mirror with a cop in it.  

~Dudley Moore

- - - - -

I like to drive.  I like going around to see things I wouldn't see if I sat at home.  And then I like to take pictures of those things.  I'm not sure if it's the going, the photographing, the thinking, or the writing about my drives that I like the most.  

I only sometimes get scared that I am someplace I ought not be and that someone is going to come out and yell at me.  Unfortunately, those places are usually where the best photos are.  

That's interesting, isn't it?  The things people don't want us to see are the things by which we are most intrigued.  Whether it's their rusty bedspring lawn art or their livestock or where they hide their money.  People are so sensitive sometimes.  They're cute.

Cactus

People Trample Over Flowers,

Yet Only To Embrace A Cactus.

~ James Joyce

- - - - -

I remember when I was a kid my grandma had a bunch of cacti in her backyard.  Which isn't common in Iowa.  And I remember getting pocked on those things.  And I wondered, "Why does Grandma always put a plate of brownies in the middle of the cactus patch?"

I guess I won't ever know that.

On an unrelated note, I sure do remember the melodious sound of her laughter. 

Smell

Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days.

~ Benjamin Franklin

- - - - -

When I left, Leslie asked if I wanted a snack for my trip - a granola bar or string cheese.  Or leftover Brussels sprouts.  She said I could take some and pass them out to other passengers on the plane.  We discussed the pros (Brussels sprouts are delicious) and cons (Brussels sprouts have a distinctive odor) and decided against it.

Why we always allow society to force us to conform when it comes to appropriate airline snackage, I will never know.  However, I suppose I'd rather limit my airline Brussels sprouts intake if it means that someone else will have to limit his Durian intake. 

Yes, I had to look that up.  It is the stinkiest food according to someone on the internet who has the skills to put together a list.  It frightens me what Durian smells like since Lutefisk is only #5 on the stinkiest food list.

Light

There is not enough darkness in all the world to put out the light of even one small candle.

~ Robert Alden

- - - - -

The commercials for Light Brights when I was a kid included the following lines, "Light Bright making things with liiiiight.  What a sight making things with Light Bright."  Wait.  That isn't even right.  It was LITE Bright, wasn't it?  (wait here.  I'll check)

I'm back and for Pete's sake it WAS LITE.  Even worse it was LITE BRITE.  Why do companies do that?  Does it really sell more of the product to spell the words incorrectly?

Well, I guess it worked at my house because my parents brought one.  However, as I am confident I have mentioned, my parents also took away the chemistry kit that came with my microscope when I was a child.  Clearly, they were trying to hold me back academically - in spelling and chemistry. 

Shame on them.  For the record, I am a pretty good speller.  (pause)  They did successfully stifle my chemistry progenacity, though.

Ice

In skating over thin ice, our safety is in our speed.

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

- - - - -

 

A while back, I was writing to Leslie to let her know who would play Barbara Staner Uehling (Mizzou Chancellor from 1978-1987) in a movie.  Just because.  I do that.  I always am trying to cast people in movies.

 

Anyway, I couldn’t remember Tilda Swinton’s name, but I remembered she played the ice queen in The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. Except it wasn’t The Ice Queen. It was The White Witch. Otherwise, it would be The Lion, The Queen, and The Wardrobe. 

 

And she was a witch because the idea of a queen hidden in a closet is a ridiculous concept.

Cooking

My cooking is so bad my kids thought Thanksgiving was to commemorate Pearl Harbor.

~ Phyllis Diller

- - - - -

I like it when people cook.  When you cook for others you show them that you love them.  You want to help sustain them.  You care about them and are willing to give your time and effort to their well-being.

Unless you are cooking meth.  Drugs are bad.

Thanksgiving

When you rise in the morning, give thanks for the light, for your life, for your strength.  Give thanks for your food and the joy of living.  If you see no reason to give thanks, the fault lies in yourself.

~ Tecumseh

- - - - -

I didn't come to love Thanksgiving until I was an adult.  I didn't really like it as a kid.  I don't love turkey or ham (though there have been turkeys and hams I have had which have been very good).  I do NOT like pumpkin pie.  I am not at all enamored with green bean casserole.  I like corn.  I like stuffing.  I like mashed potatoes - mainly because I grew up in a house that only had mashed potatoes occasionally - as in not every Thanksgiving or Christmas.  We always had boiled potatoes.  Easier, but not an pleasant in either taste or texture, if you ask me.  Which no one ever did or I would have shared my thoughts on that.

As opposed to not liking boiled potatoes that much, I do like gratitude.  I really, really do.  I like to acknowledge what people do and how they make the world a better place.  I like to do it because it makes me feel good, but not because, "Oh, Michelle is so nice.  She always says thank you and good job to people."  No, I like to do it because there are people doing amazing things every day who don't get acknowledged for their contributions.  Not that they are doing kind things to solicit praise.  

I just think it is really important to notice things.  And to let people know that you noticed.

As for Thanksgiving, I like the food even though Thanksgiving food is not all my favorite food.  I like the smells of Thanksgiving.  I like people crowding into kitchens and around tables that are too small.  I like the nervous feeling of being around people you haven't seen in a while and then reconnecting and remembering what you cherish about them.  

When I was a kid, I remember always hearing people talk at my grandparents' house (my Grandma and Grandpa Boettcher's farm).  They talked about what route they took when they drove there.  They talked about the weather.  They talked about how well or poorly their gardens had done.  My dad is the third of three boys, though all of my uncles have since passed.  Anyway, it was the same (to my child-ears BORING) conversation over and over and over.  Seriously, it was so boring that I thought I was going to die.  

I did not die.

Anyway, that was then.  Now I think that Thanksgiving represents love to me.  I think Thanksgiving is about love because it is about food.  I like it when there is drama over what kind of stuffing someone made.  People argue about that kind of thing because they are missing out on some love when they don't have oyster stuffing or cornbread stuffing or whatever kind of stuffing they think they ought to be having.  Every family has a story about the year the dog stole the turkey or the cook used sugar instead of salt to brine the turkey or Thanksgiving dinner was horrible because someone made ham instead of turkey and overcooked the ham so everyone went to Village Inn on the way home to get a "real" Thanksgiving dinner.

Stories are my favorite.  Thanksgiving isn't about gifts and selfishness and commercialization and money.  Not that Thanksgiving dinner is cheap.  But Thanksgiving is about storytelling, story-making, and the mythology of memory. 

Thanksgiving is about being together.  Or thinking of people you aren't with.  And putting love in the food and love in your thoughts and love into the world.

At least that is what it is to me.

Love and sometimes board games.

And board games are about winning.  Which I also love.

Holiday

No self-respecting mother would run out of intimidations on the eve of a major holiday.

~ Erma Bombeck

- - - - -


I love that there is a holiday dedicated to gratitude.  To looking at the amazing things in the world and celebrating the fact that they exist.  To realizing that we are fortunate and realizing how much of a difference some people can make in our lives.

July 6th is so awesome.

Mundane

Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.

~ Pablo Picasso

- - - - -

I think it is a good idea to make the mundane special.  Like taking a bunch of leaves and making hearts out of them and leaving them on someone's garbage can lid.  I think that it would make taking the garbage out a little less dreary if there was a nice little surprise waiting.  I think it is important to brighten someone's day - even in little ways.  Showing you are thinking of them is important.  And generous.  And kind.

And when the police tell you you have violated a no-trespass order, I think you should just explain why you were loitering around someone's trash can.  And I think - if you find a way to make them understand why it's okay for you to be there - you should let me know.  Because I just can't get through to them sometimes.

Work

If you want something said, ask a man... 

If you want something done, ask a woman.

~ Margaret Thatcher

- - - - -

Leslie said that she was sure she wouldn't run for president and then she said that was probably a good thing.  She said she wouldn't want to be the president.  

It does seem to take a certain kind of person to want that job.  I'm not going to comment on what kind of person it takes to do that job well because that is highly subjective - and maybe irrelevant to who wants the job.  I just think you have to have a certain sense of identity and ambition and competitiveness and passion...  To be honest a mix of both good and less admirable characteristics.

I just agreed with Leslie and said I probably wouldn't be a strong political asset.  "I'd probably trip over things and spill stuff and blog a lot, and none of that would necessarily help your administration."

Walk

No one saves us but ourselves.  

No one can and no one may.  

We ourselves must walk the path.

~ Buddha

- - - - -

I know that I am fortunate.  I know that there are a lot of privileges and opportunities I have.  I know I get to do things others do not.  I get to experience things others cannot.  I have talents others do not.  For example, I know how to walk into a party like I am walking onto a yacht.  Not a lot of people can do that. 

Mudder's

When a true genius appears, you can know him by this sign: 

that all the dunces are in a confederacy against him.

~ Jonathan Swift

- - - - -

I drove past this sign and was compelled to take a photo of it.  I like signs.  I think it is interesting to take a look at the messages people choose to broadcast to the world.  Or the labels they adopt for themselves.

I just wonder if this particular place was named after someone's mother or if it was someone's last name or if it is a place you're supposed to go there after you drive your truck or motorcycle through mud.  The best guess, though, is that someone probably "muttered" when they suggested a name for the place and people just misheard him.  Or her.  Probably him.

Windows

Strange things blow in through my window on the wings of the night wind 

and I don't worry about my destiny.

~ Carl Sandburg

- - - - -
I suppose a house wouldn't have to have windows.  One wouldn't have to be able to see outside.  To look at the trees or the sky or the building next door or who approaches the door.  There is risk in the window.  There is the opportunity to see out, but the opportunity for others to see in.  It's easier to break in through a window than a wall.  And when we really see others, we also afford them a chance to see us.

Also, I think they ought to be called windnos not windows.  Because they are carpentry's way of saying NO to the wind.  Right?

DSM

Everyone calls himself a friend, but only a fool relies on it; nothing is commoner than the name, nothing rarer than the thing.

~ Jean de la Fontaine

- - - - -

In some written correspondence, I referred to Des Moines as DSM.  Leslie said that reminded her of the DSM IV (The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders).  I had not considered that before.  Maybe that is why there aren't a series of cities named Des Moines.  It would be fine for DSM I through DSM III.  After that it would get a little dicey.

Birds

It is not only fine feathers that make fine birds.

~Aesop

- - - - -

Add to vacuum cleaners and copiers, birdbaths.  I can fix those items.  However, I wish I had thought it through when I fixed the birdbath for Leslie's mom.  I don't know what I was thinking. I don't think they ought to be bathing in public.  Perverts.  Depravens. Debauchickadees.  Weirdowls.

You get the idea. 

Barn

A little and a little, collected together, becomes a great deal; the heap in the barn consists of single grains, and drop and drop makes an inundation.

~ Arabian Proverb

- - - - -

When the old farmer said he was going to put up the structure so that it blocked my view, I asked him not to.  He said he didn't have to listen to me.  He could do whatever he wanted.  I wasn't the boss of him  I tried to talk to him as a neighbor.  In a friendly, generous way I encouraged him to consider alternate locations.  Locations that would block someone else's view.

He didn't listen.  He just did what he wanted.  There was no convincing him otherwise.

You could say he was being stubbarn.

But you don't have to.

Ethics

Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is right to do.

~ Potter Stewart

- - - - -

Me:  I'm going to present on ethics -- bwaa ha ha!!!

Gretchen:  Fake it 'til you make it.